Steve Beck and Ashley Beck with their children Daxton, 3, and Blayne, eight months, at their Hay River, N.W.T., home. Blayne was born significantly premature, forcing the family to stay in Edmonton while he received life-saving medical care. Fortunately, they were able to stay in Valour Place at 11109 111 Ave. in Edmonton, saving the family financially while allowing them to be there when their infant son needed them most.Supplied / Edmonton

Valour Place didn’t just offer Ashley Beck’s family a place to stay while her premature baby was in the hospital, she credits their support with saving his life.

“It had such an impact not just for us emotionally and financially, but the impact for the health of our baby. They helped us save him,” said Beck, holding back tears.

Beck was 24 weeks pregnant when she felt the first pangs of preterm labour. With local hospitals in Hay River, N.W.T., unable to provide care for such a severely premature baby, Beck was airlifted to hospital in Edmonton.

She spent 10 days on strict bed rest while she fought to hold on to her baby as long as she could. If her baby survived, it would be at least three months before they would be able to leave the hospital.

Beck says she wasn’t just worried for the fate of her unborn baby, but for her family at home, with a toddler and two other children who still need care and a mortgage and bills that needed to be covered.

“I remember laying in bed in the hospital thinking, this is a disaster. I’m terrified,” Beck said.

Her husband, an RCMP officer, drove down from Hay River with his corporal. After asking other officers in Edmonton for advice, he was directed to Valour Place.

After one phone call, Beck said staff at Valour Place – which provides members of the military, veterans and RCMP officers and their families a place to stay at no cost while a loved one is receiving medical treatment in Edmonton – had already arranged a room for her family with a key code so they could come and go as needed.

“I just started to cry, because when I saw it I realized it wasn’t just a hotel, it was going to be our home,” said Beck.

Baby Blayne was born on May 24, 2016, well in advance of his due date at the end of August.

Beck said they didn’t know if Blayne would live from one moment to the next, so her and her husband alternated caring for their toddler and staying with their baby at the hospital in shifts. Because they had a place to stay nearby at Valour Place, Beck says they were able to be there for every treatment.

“He never had to endure a procedure without us there to comfort him,” Beck said.

Nurses recommended “kangaroo care,” where parents cuddle their baby skin-to-skin to help Blayne recover. Beck credits being able to give their baby attention round-the-clock with his recovery, which Beck described as nothing short of miraculous.

Daxton Beck, 3, with his eight-month old brother, Blayne.Edmonton

“He’s amazing. He hasn’t had a sniffle,” Beck said.

While medical staff looked after the wellbeing of her baby and her husband was in the hospital, Beck says she was able to lean on staff and other families at Valour Place for support when she needed it most.

“I would come home from the hospital watching my baby fight for every breath and not knowing if he was going to make it through the next shift, and I wouldn’t even have my spouse there to talk to about it,” said Beck, adding, “everyone who is there is going through some kind of struggle, so there is a comradery.”

The Beck family was able to stay at Valour Place until Blayne was released from hospital a full three weeks before his actual due date.

The Becks’ experience is just one story of families who have sought shelter and support at Valour Place, which celebrated providing 10,000 nights of care in January.

“We are proud to be able to provide the families of our military, RCMP, first responders, veterans, and the families of the fallen, a ‘hope away from home’ when they need it most,” said Lydia Migus, executive director of Valour Place.

Valour Place, located at 11109 111 Ave., is the first temporary residence of its kind in Canada. Migus estimated they have saved their families as much as $1.2 million in out-of-pocket costs since opening in 2012.

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